HONORING HIS PRESENCE

The Siddha path is one of practical living. It encompasses the art of taking care of the body (udal), breath (uyir), and soul (atma). It draws ways to keep the body intact without deteriorating and prolonging the breath that sustains life in us. It enlightens us of the atma that dwells in us. This is passed on by way of mouth as in the guru disciple lineage or guru sishya parambara. We are blessed if we come under the tutelage of a Siddha guru preferably directly under the mystical 18 Siddhas. I was blessed to have Tavayogi come in the physical form and guide and lead me and others on. Then after his demise, the Siddhas graced my home personally. For instance, Agathiyar speaking through a devotee to a couple, after having given them much guidance in their family life, called out to Tirumular to come. He pointed to his left and asked the Siddha to join him. After that, he called out to Bhogar and asked him to take his place on his right. Seeing these Siddhas take their place in my small prayer room, I backed up towards the door standing some distance. But the most compassionate father invited me into the circle and honored this sinner too.

The AVM  family were regular followers of the Nadi. But as if he knew the coming of the pandemic in a timely manner in late 2019 Agathiyar began to switch his mode of communication replacing the Nadi readings by coming directly through his devotees. Since then the message came through his messengers minus the instrument of the Nadi and its readers. Such messages come through other means too. For instance, watching the movie "The Gospel of John" I could see similarities in the lives and the messages of Jesus and Ramalinga Adigal. For instance in the "Gospel of John" (https://www.biblica.com/bible/niv/john/2/) 

"13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” 18 The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” 20 They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken", 

when Jesus tells them to bring down the temple and that he shall raise it in 3 days he is asked how could he perform the feat in 3 days when they took 46 years to build the temple. But we are told that what Jesus meant was his body and his resurrection that was to come. The Siddhas too have spoken of the body as being the temple. Ramalinga Adigal has sung that the dead shall arise. Gnanabharathi in his well-researched book "Tamil Mannin Thanthai" writes that Ramalinga Adigal came in his form some 28 years later in 1902 after he "merged" with Arutperunjothi Aandavar in 1874 specifically to give darshan to his faithful disciple Kalpattu Aiya and to place him in samadhi. He fulfilled his promise to his followers that he shall come again. When Ramalinga Adigal materialized on 26.4.1902 (http://www.vallalarspace.com/Space/list/653), Kalpathu Aiya was overjoyed in seeing Ramalinga Adigal appear before he dropped his mortal form. Ramalinga Adigal is said to have seen to his disciple's samadhi rites and stayed for 3 days in the physical form before de-materializing again. Jesus knew the role his disciples had to play in his life. One of them had to betray him. Another chose to believe only when he saw the 5 marks on Jesus and only then was he convinced. Similarly, Ramalinga Adigal was disappointed at his followers too except for three namely Kalpattu Aiya, Subburaaya Paradesi, and Kattamuthupalaiyam Narayanar. Others went against his directives and wishes opening up the Satya Gnana Sabai although he had locked the doors to it earlier.

A great revelation came further by way of Vashisht Vaid's blog. Reading some portions of this immense volume, we could understand and relate to how we were trained to conduct ourselves in the matters of the world without the least knowledge that what we did was covered in the sacred sermon that Agathiyar gave to the assembly of sages on man's role and purpose. The common man who lives in this world of Sariyai farms the lands and cares for the herds etc, while the rich adorns jewels and gems and the priestly serves God. In coming to Kriyai the former brings his harvest and offers it to God while the latter sponsors and conducts the rituals respectively. In coming to Yogam they transcend race and religion and irrespective of creed and status, they learn to bring their body, mind, and breath under their control, mastering them. This is exactly in tandem with what Agathiyar spoke at the assembly of the sages in the past. Man of the world shall adorn silk and jewels so that he raises them to a higher level of evolution through their association in covering and adorning them. This explains why we dress our deities in silk, garland them with flowers and adorn them in jewelry too. The very association with the idol of the deity raises the stature of these offerings. It also explains why animals are closely associated with the deities and are prime in our worship. Even the dead branch is given a new lease of life as it is thrown into the fire pit of the yagam and homam and is raised to another level. Then Agathiyar calls on man to assist fellow humans too. Man begins to engage in Karma yoga. Man shall go out to help strangers who do not have any blood relationship hence uplifting their lives too, raising their standard of living, and seeing to it that they have at least a decent meal and a roof over their heads. Man shall remember his ancestors and worship them and those raised to a divine state as in the village deities, ancestral deities, etc. And for those in the way of the guru shall worship the whole lineage of gurus and observe the auspicious days and their Jayanthi. Man shall then come to believe and worship God, the almighty and come to know his purpose in coming here and his role in the divine play. These are the 5 tenets that Agathiyar drew up for mankind. 

We have read of the famous koan that goes "First there is a mountain, then there is no mountain, then there is."

"During the Tang Dynasty, the Chinese Ch’an [Zen in Japanese] master Qingyuan Weixin famously wrote: “Before I had studied Ch’an for thirty years, I saw mountains as mountains and rivers as rivers. When I arrived at a more intimate knowledge, I came to the point where I saw that mountains are not mountains, and rivers are not rivers. But now that I have got its very substance, I am at rest. For it’s just that I see mountains once again as mountains, and rivers once again as rivers.”  (Source: https://tricycle.org/magazine/first-there-mountain-then-there-no-mountain/)

In the beginning, we are skeptical, asking ourselves how can God be in a piece of wood, stone, or metal. But we go with the flow as idol worship was introduced by our parents and their parents before them. In engaging in Kriyai later we realize that it is indeed possible to energize everything around us by way of chanting mantras, reciting hymns, worshipping copper yantras, doing libation to stone and metal deities, conducting yagam and homams, etc. Moving into yoga we begin to experience this energy within. Finally, in attaining the state of gnanam we begin to see this energy of God in everything. We shall see him in the stone and metal again but this time we know it to be true. That is gaining Gnanam. The mountain is a mountain again. This is the state of the gnanis. For a gnani or man of divine wisdom, he sees and feels the energy and vibration and God's presence in every cell and atom acknowledging the age-old saying "Tunilum irupaan, turumbilum iruppaan" (தூணிலும் இருப்பான் துரும்பிலும் இருப்பான்).

My masters were very liberal with me. While some seekers had asked me after reading my earlier websites on the Kallar ashram if it had lodging facilities and if they had to make payments, as Agathiyar in the Nadi had asked me to spend some days at Kallar ashram to experience the ashramite life first hand I threw caution to the wind as I knew I was in safehands and opted to forego the comfort that I already had back home in the city for the awaited ashram experience. When I arrived at Kallar in 2005 Tavayogi gave me the option whether I wanted to bath in the bathroom erected at the ashram, especially for Malaysians he said who are used to the comforts in life or take a bath in the mineral-rich waters of the river that cruised and flowed nearby that had had its source in the upper fringes of Ooty. I opted for the latter. We washed our soiled clothes too in the river. When deciding where to take me Tavayogi asked me if I wanted to go visit some living Swamiji's in Ooty or to the caves. I picked the latter. We stayed overnight in the caves in the jungles. Similarly, when I was in Supramania Swami's village home at Nachaananthal some 8 km away from Tiruvannamalai town center, Swami had obtained permission for me to stay in an adjacent bungalow that they took care of for the owner who resided in the city. I opted to stay with Swami in his humble home instead. I took my bath outdoors just like the others in a makeshift bathroom with thatched leaves that served as walls that provided minimum privacy. I had to walk some distance to ease myself for the call of nature, bringing a vessel of water along to wash up later. 

When we see heads of missions or movements who seem to know every answer to every question put to them which at times makes us question its logic, my gurus Supramania Swami and Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal surprised me when they told me that they did not have any knowledge of certain matters that I raised and honorably admitted that they did not have the answers too. Supramania Swami admitted that he did not know Agathiyar and the Nadi. He listened with intent as I shared the contents of my Nadi reading during my second visit to him in 2005. He asked if he could have his Nadi read. This surprised me for being a gnani who could see the future why did he ask to see the Nadi? He had spoken about my future (that was revealed earlier by Agathiyar in my Nadi) the very first time I met him in 2003 without me mentioning it. As he was an astrologer too, neither did he ask for my birth details and chart my horoscope to predict the future. He did not read my palm either. He just sat there and spilled the beans and spun my life story before me. As for Tavayogi he told me he did know the answer to my question as to what Ramalinga Adigal meant when he told his followers and devotees that the dead shall arise again. This shows the humbleness in my gurus in admitting that there is much to learn as the old lady saint Avvai told us. We are indeed blessed to come under the care of the Siddhas and their watchful eyes. They shall not have us err.

ENGAGING WITH THE SIDDHAS

Just as a piece of cloth is elevated and accorded all the respect when the nation's flag is printed on it, a stone or metal is elevated to the state of God when it is carved into the form of deities and worshipped. I guess this is what Agathiyar meant when he revealed the purpose of humankind taking birth in his 5 tenets presented at the assembly of the sages in the past. Man besides elevating himself and others was to help elevate the status of all beings and entities in the animal, plant, and mineral kingdom too.

Vashisht Vaid writes of this message to mankind by Agathiyar in his blog at https://holysageagathiyar.com/

"The number 5 work [pancha karma] for a human being is to dutifully aid and help, the ongoing evolution of all co-existing beings and entities, who all vitally exist upon the lower levels of the evolutionary ladder, also dutifully support the manifested matrix [paripancha], and many of the lower kingdoms, vitally exist like the minerals having precious and semi-precious crystals, who also having basic aspects of vitality, also gradually evolve by increasing in their sizes, in correspondence to the vital energies of celestial organs of time and space relationships, and many of whom get gracefully embodied in various types of jewelry to be prestigiously borne as specific remedies by evolving humans, and also various types of living herbs and plants of the plant kingdom, especially the signature plants with magical and supernatural powers, get vitally planted gracefully in their houses and in their surrounding gardens, and various types of working and pet animals of the animal kingdom."

Hence man's purpose in taking birth was made known to all by Agathiyar. In coming to his path he makes us realize further man's dream of attaining the goal that is "by properly fulfilling their five main duties during their cyclic lives, in this ongoing evolution of planet earth, and get finally liberated [mukta] for their further ascensions in the invisible ethereal web [adrishya akasha jaal], through gradually increasing higher conscious states of time and space relationships, till they all themselves finally achieve the two highest universal worlds tapah loka [brahmanda vaikuntha loka] and satyam loka [brahmanda shiv loka] of this infinite universe [brahmanda], and thus get spiritually qualified to vitally carry out much higher conscious roles, in the unknowable and non-explainable worlds of para brahmanda [outfinite universe], during their distant brilliant future."

Who are these Siddhas then? As the young kid asks the trafficker whether he was a good person or bad in the movie "Nayagan" are the Siddhas good or bad? Where do they live? Is it some distant place, planet, or universe? How is it that they come to our call immediately? How do they materialize in our world?

In coming to follow the path of the Siddhas many find obstacles placed by way of family and friends. Males by nature were meant to take care and protect the herd. When engaged in the teachings of the Siddha they involve completely spending time for social service and upliftment of their species. Sadly this nature or weakness or rather strength in them is seen as threatening to some family members and circles. Many view it as the male distancing himself from his responsibility and spending much less time with his family. This I came to know when I started fresh on the path, has been the reason for many adverse opinions of the path and reasons for others not to venture into it. The Siddhas had been accused of disrupting their lives. When I began to seek information about the Siddhas from existing establishments in 2002, many told me that their family lives were disrupted after coming to the worship of the Siddhas. This was what I saw too with life partners staying apart. It is a blessing if both couples are on the same frequency and are on the same path of worship. It is a blessing to their children too who shall learn the tricks of the trade too and spread the following as they grow older. Couples have gone their way just because of differences in opinion on their respective faiths. Nothing seems to have changed with time. Someone told me the Siddhas drive him nuts and gave up on them in the face of bodily torment that came with certain practices taught by his guru who according to him turned mad too. The failure of the Siddhas in bringing relief to his bodily torment drove him to arrive at this decision. Someone else shared to another that he spending much time doing charity was a reason his wife filed a divorce. I believe a shallow understanding of the path is the reason to arrive at these conclusion. They fail to see that the follower of the path is in fact strengthening his lineage by engaging with the Gods and also helping to remove the stain on his ancestors as a result of their past karma. He is preparing a conducive atmosphere for new souls to grow up into becoming Siddhas themselves in the former. As for the latter, it is said that the ancestors of Agathiyar who were hanging upside down from tree branches due to a curse were relieved of the curse when Agathiyar came by. Also, it is said that one who takes up monkhood will relieve the karma of 21 generations of his ancestors. 

Then there are others who come seeking the path with an agenda and expectations. They too leave. Many years on we see them return disappointed, coming back to the starting point and  turning up seeking relief from the Siddhas and gurus rather then having become Siddhas and gurus themselves in this time of absense. Yet others keep seeking never satisfied with the journey. They chose to see the negative traits in all and thus can never settle down on the path. I believe no one can satisfy this lot. 

We are made to understand that all these are part of the evolution process. The souls are in different stages of evolution. These experiences shall bring on enlighthenment or gnanam within them eventually. We are told to accept everyone.

In walking the path we are told of the four stages that we progress on this journey namely that of Sariyai, Kriyai, Yogam and Gnanam. In Sariyai we live a mundane life in the world created by God. In Kriyai, we serve God as obedient baktas or devotees, servants, followers, and believers. In Yogam we serve him as a son and a student and disciple. In Gnana we merge with him or rather he merges within us, moving in us and dictating us henceforth. On this pilgrim's journey, it is said that the transformation takes place in us as we progress along on the spiritual ladder. The divine comes down or rather blooms from within and shows itself as does a seed germinate and sprouts from the soil and grows into a plant.

It is because we make contact with the Siddhas that they become accessible to us 24/7. With the initiation into the path and concerted efforts and sadhanas by the seeker and follower that follows, a bridge is built between two worlds. The Siddhas then visit us occasionally and later come to rest in our homes. Soon our home becomes their abode too. Eventually, they take up residence in the cave in our hearts and lead us on without the need for external apparatus or other known mediums. This is when many are seen performing Siddhis. But in reality, they are not doing it but the divine in them moves them to do it. The deity Karuppanasamy told a devotee through whom he comes not to receive payment for His "services". I figured that it was He who was healing them compared to the many trained healers and gurus who make it their living and profession. While the former shall not be tainted by karma as he is a vehicle of the Gods, the latter can receive payment for their services as it shall offset the karma that leans on them in treating others. But sadly man manipulates this divine energy and uses it to his advantage for want of fame, money, and power. This is where we are told that even while standing at the threshold of the kingdom to God we have to be careful that we do not fall prey to these vasanas or desires. The moment of revelation is said to be akin to standing on the razor's edge. It can cut the veil asunder or also hurt us badly and derail our mission for good. The lure of the world lurks behind the curtain for those who have not burnt their desires to ashes though they might have progressed to the dizzy heights of attaining the state of a guru. Here is where we have to constantly call upon the divine to safeguard us from falling down the dark pit - again! 

If the Siddhas are accessible to us, is there another mystical world out there or rather running parallel to us? 

My first guru Supramania Swami of Tiruvannamalai told me as he sat on his bed made of jute ropes and looked out through the small opening that was the window at his kudil which displayed the holy mountain in all its majesty, he could see Siddhas and Rishis going about their daily chores on the slopes of the holy mountain. Ain't that amazing? Bhagawan Ramana is said to have entered an opening in this mountain and seen a world akin to what was shown to us in the movie "Baba" where a stranger brings the lead character to a cave opening and leads him over the dales and plains to finally meet Babaji Nagaraj. Knowing that man shall taint and spoil every place he steps into Ramana had the opening closed. A devotee who took up the chore and responsibility to care for a run-down Shiva temple on the fringes of Tiruvannamalai was jolted off his feet or rather given a tug and pulled along when he was invited to follow a stranger who revealed himself later as the famed Isakhi Siddhar to enter into another portal and world that lay within a crack in the wall behind the Shivalingam at the temple. As the Siddha disapeared into the portal or the other realm while still holding on to the hand of the youth, the youth panicked and pulled his hand away hence missing the chance to venture into the world of the Siddhas. My second guru Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal who after his demise appeared in a dream to a devotee of Agathiyar and a disciple was seen ferried across an ocean of water with several others by Lord Shiva, towards the other bank where Siddhas, Rishis, and sages were seen going about their daily regime. 

So how do they appear to us? To one who is in Sariyai living in the world of material possessions, he could be jolted from his dream by a total stranger who knocks on his door bringing him a timely message. To one engaged in Kriyai they could come through others as energies and talk to them as is seen widely in the worship of village deities or yellai deivam and kaval deivam, ancestral deities or kula deivam, and the pantheon of Gods and Goddesses. They could appear in the flames of the fire pit that is lit as vouched by many as having seen the myriad shapes and forms of deities in the flames or seen to open their eyes in their idols and paintings as witnessed by us at AVM. They could come as vibrations sensed by a select few during the moments of puja as felt solely by Mataji Sarojini Ammaiyar at AVM. They could come as the breeze, aroma and scent in the air, balls of light and sparkles in the eyes as Tavayogi introduced us to them. For one engaged in Yoga, they come as the breath and the light sensations within the forehead. They come as energies and vibrations too that traverse their body momentarily connecting internally and bridging these worlds for these brief moments. Finally, they come in the silence that prevails in sitting alone transmitting Gnana or divine knowledge or rather bringing out the wealth of hidden knowledge lodged in them from time immemorial. 

We are told of many existing worlds. The movies have conveyed and depicted numerous worlds in celluloid that grasp and hold our attention at the cinemas. Books, mostly science fiction and fantasy, have delved into these worlds. Then on further scrutiny of the sacred texts, we are told that there is life and death. While alive, we fall asleep and enter the dream world daily. While awake, we tend to daydream too. In death, we are told there is heaven and hell. Ramalinga Adigal and Agathiyar have spoken about these external worlds. Agathiyar speaks about a world of Siddhas just 40 feet down at a place revealing it to Hanumathdasan in his Jeeva Nadi. From further revelations to him, we tend to understand the magic of the Siddhas.

Once a villager came to see the Jeeva Nadi in possession of Hanumathdasan after hearing about it. He narrated the reason he wanted the Nadi read. His wife was carrying their eight children. The doctors had advised against it saying that it would put her life at risk. To make matters worse his village was not easily accessible and did not have the necessary amenities. The villager wanted to know from Agathiyar if his wife’s life was at risk.

Agathiyar reveals, “What the doctors said was right. There is the likelihood that she would not survive this delivery.” Agathiyar then reveals to Hanumathdasan, “He has faith in God. I have to help him out. He had saved many lives from drowning in his last birth. He had fasted and had climbed, amidst many difficulties, to my shrine at the Pothigai hills to perform milk libation or Abhisegam, all out of devotion to me. He had saved a girl from drowning in the Pothigai waterfalls too. That is also the moment when he was pulled in by the strong undercurrent and drowned. Due to his good deeds in the past life, my wife Lobhamudra and I shall attend to his wife during her time of delivery." He directed him to return immediately for she was in labor. However, the man did not return to his village immediately.

After four days, he returned cheerfully to Hanumathdasan. He narrated what took place in his village home in his absence. A couple had gone over to his house. They asked his seven children to leave while the woman attended to his wife. When the woman held his wife’s hands, his wife was relieved of her labor pain. His wife delivered a boy without any complications and both were fine. The man on his part chanted outside the villager’s home and later prepared some herbal medicines and passed it to the villager’s wife. They both left without asking for anything in return. 

In another episode from Hanumathdasan's writings of his many encounters with the Siddhas, he writes that just as Agathiyar ended his revelation in the Nadi, some thugs gatecrashed into his home with weapons asking to know about the whereabouts of a vagabond who was with him the night before. Hanumathdasan tried to calm them down. He invited their leader to take a sit. He questioned him as to why he was looking for the vagabond. The leader refused to divulge and kept asking about the vagabond’s whereabouts. He questioned Hanumathdasan the vagabond’s purpose and reason to come to him. Hanumathdasan narrated what took place the night before. After listening to what had transpired the night before, the leader was surprised and impressed and asked if Agathiyar could reveal all. He wanted to find out from Agathiyar if the vagabond was alive. He revealed that he had to deliver the vagabond to someone. Hanumathdasan looked into the Nadi where Agathiyar revealed the intention of the leader is looking out for the man. The huge sum that he received to bring the vagabond would aid in his daughter’s eye operation. Hanumathdasan told the leader what Agathiyar had mentioned in the Nadi. The leader immediately fell at the feet of Hanumathdasan in an outburst acknowledging what Agathiyar had mentioned in the Nadi as being true. Hanumathdasan put forward a proposal to the leader that if Agathiyar should show him another way out of his predicament would the leader give up the idea of looking for the vagabond?

Agathiyar revealed more.

“In the past birth, a kid had lost his eyesight due to the leader’s action. As a result, his daughter was losing her eyesight at this birth. Even if he resorted to carrying out what he had come for, his daughter would not regain her eyesight.” Then Agathiyar stated three conditions if she was to see again. First: the leader was to change over a new leaf. Second: he was to seek out a Siddha in Kollimalai. Third: he was to serve in an orphanage until his life’s end. The leader agreed to do the first two but explained that he could not carry out the third because he was married to three wives and had to support them. Agathiyar provided the remedy to regain his daughter's eyesight. The juice of the rare Nethira Thosa Nivarthi Puspam, a flower that bloomed once in three years in Kollimalai, was to be applied to the eyes and head daily. Agathiyar added that a Siddha at Kollimalai should provide for this unique and rare flower. “Carry out this treatment for ninety days. She will regain her eyesight. She would not need to be operated on." 

"Leave for Kollimalai immediately”, instructed Agathiyar.

Hearing Agathiyar's revelation in the Nadi, the headman's follower objected to him leaving for Kollimalai before finishing their ‘business’ since they had already received payment for it. The leader then motioned him to come forward to seek the Nadi too. Agathiyar revealed about him too. He too began to cry, acknowledging that what Agathiyar had revealed in the Jeeva Nadi was the truth. He too was asked to seek out the Siddha in Kollimalai for a remedy for his wife’s ailment. Both of them left immediately for Kollimalai.

Hanumathdasan was keen to find out what had transpired in the days that followed. He peeked into the sacred oracle again. Agathiyar answered, “The vagabond left the family and had ventured north, had made numerous reports to the police regarding his safety. That is how the family came to know that he was still alive. One of the family members had engaged the hitmen to ‘finish’ him off. But the one who sent out the hitmen was in very bad shape in the hospital. Now the family had repented and had taken the vagabond in."

After some time the assistant who had the earlier reading too arrived at Hanumathdasan’s door with his family. They fell at the feet of Hanumathdasan. This man’s wife had recovered fully. Hanumathdasan was told that the leader's daughter too was cured and her father had since taken up Siddha medicine, becoming a practitioner. The assistant narrated what had taken place in Kollimalai. After looking around in vain for the said Siddha in the Kollimalai hills, the men had laid down to rest under a tree. Suddenly an old man tapped one of them and asked him by his name. The hitmen were amazed how this stranger knew their names and how he identified them correctly. He asked both of them to follow. The old man then led them to a hut. He handed one of them an extract of a plant in a bottle to apply on the eyes of his daughter and assured him that she would begin to see in thirty days. He asked him to come back for more if needed. To the other, he handed an herbal preparation in a powder form to be taken with honey. The old man assured him that his wife’s heart problem will be cured in twenty-seven days. When the men handed him some money, he refused to accept saying that the money was taken to ‘finish’ off someone and that he did not want ‘stained’ money. When he went into the hut and did not come out for a long time, the two men took a peek inside but there was no one. They waited a while but as he did not turn up they eventually returned home. 

Hanumathdasan asked if they went back to the Siddha again. He replied that they went to Kollimalai again but there was no hut at that spot and the Siddha was nowhere to be seen too. When these men asked those who frequented Kollimalai about the Siddha and his hut, they were told that they had never come across any hut or Siddha either.

After they left Hanumathdasan approached Agathiyar to find out who the Siddha was. “That was my disciple Bhogar. He carried out my wishes and had dispersed the medicine to both of them personally”, came the reply in the Nadi. Agathiyar added, “Bhogar still lives and moves around in Kollimalai. If one prays to Bhogar for assistance, he shall take the form of a Siddha practitioner and treat them, cure their illnesses and save them."

In another episode, Agathiyar most graciously delivers Bhogar's remedy for aids to an individual who sought out Agathiyar's Jeeva Nadi. Agathiyar instructs him to carry out atonement for each member of his family to remove their past karma and only then to undertake a journey to Sathuragiri or Pothigai where certain herbs were available for preparing the Siddha medication prescribed by Bhogar. The person took his family to Sathuragiri as instructed by Agathiyar hoping someone will deliver the cure. But no one was of any help to them. After 45 days someone delivers a note to Hanumathdasan from the person mentioning that he had run out of cash and food and nearing death, but he and his family are adamant to stay on until the family was cured. After 25 days Hanumathdasan is told of a miracle that took place at Sathuragiri. The family had decided to end their life as no one could help them with identifying and preparing the herbal portion as per Agathiyar's directive. That is when someone resembling Agathiyar and another person like Bhogar appeared to the family of four and directed them to follow them into the deep jungles of Sathuragiri where they prepared the medicine for them and had them consume it. The medicine put them to sleep. Upon awakening, the family realized they were in Sundaramahalingam Temple at Sathuragiri! After 3 months, the family appeared before Hanumathdasan, hale and healthy and cured of aids and alive to tell their tale. Agathiyar explains the human body is susceptible to 4128 diseases of which aids was listed as 3798th. The HIV virus was already known to the Siddhas years before it emerged.

Jnana Jothiamma was equally surprised to learn from Agathiyar in a Nadi reading that Bhogar had come as a youth to deliver her herbal preparations. Lord Murugan came as a kid to her on the steps of Palani and soothe her pain in her legs. Similarly, we had Bhogar come in a devotee and treat a young child and her mother at AVM. We had Agathiyar come in him and prepare a herbal poultice made from kitchen herbs and plants from the garden and placed it over the knee of another devotee bringing relief to his sports injury. I too was treated for my back pain by Dhanvantri and later Lord Murugan.

To another question from Hanumathdasan, “How can one identify Bhogar?”Agathiyar explains, “Bhogar shall have a twinkle in his eyes. He shall emit the aroma of Basil or Tulasi herb or Jawathu essence sacred ash or Vibhuti.” It is interesting to note that Agathiyar in the Jeeva Nadi revelation to Hanumathdasan says Bhogar was from Mongolia. In a Nadi revelation, Agathiyar reveals the extent of humbleness in his student Bhogar. When once Agathiyar asked Bhogar if he knew Mother Goddess, Bhogar replied he did not know. When asked if he knew Lord Vishnu, he replied he did not know too. When Agathiyar asked if he knew Lord Muruga, again Bhogar to everyone's surprise answered "No". How could one who was behind the making and installation of Lord Muruga's statue at Palani not know him? How could one who treated those mentioned in the many episodes above, when asked if he knew about the herbs, reply in the negative when he had sought, collected, and done extensive research on numerous herbs too? Bhogar replied that he did not know to all the questions put forward by Agathiyar. This surprised all those gathered. Finally, when asked what he knew, Bhogar answered that he only knew the Holy Feet of his Guru, Agathiyar. Such humbleness and total loyalty towards one's guru!

I saw this twinkle in the eyes of Tavayogi as we came out of Bhogar's samadhi at Palani. He had turned around towards me and enquired, "Yenna Magane?", after seeing me in bliss. I just walked up to him, and laid my head on his chest, thanking him silently for bringing me over to Palani that I had always regarded as the "Twilight Zone". There is something mystical about the place. I believe I had stepped into a portal going back years before what we see as the present-day samadhi of Bhogar at Palani. We just need to be led into a portal or step into one to reach the other side though I had no idea that I had just done that back then. In 2003, I was completely depleted of my energy and most likely my ego too trying to climb the steps up the hillock. Arriving at the top and still in a daze, upon entering the premises of Lord Murugan's sannadhi I only vaguely remember that a priest came up to me and snatched my bag of goodies for Lord Muruga. The next moment I remember is when he came back to return the bag of abhisegam and puja items topping it up with the sandal paste from that morning's abhisegam. I had no further recollection of what I saw in the Lord's chamber. I then took a few steps stepping into a dark corridor. Another few steps took me to a door on the right where I stepped into Bhogar's samadhi that was immediately at the back of the Murugan sannadhi. The second time I was invited to Palani by Agathiyar through the Nadi reading. Tavayogi, my brother, and I started for the Palani temple at 5 in the morning while the streets were quiet and the shops were still closed. We had to wait in the queue, as the temple was still closed. At 6.00 am we were allowed to enter. We stood in front of Palani Andavar and offered our prayers. Again I could not recall what I saw. We went down some steps to the open and crossed over to another temple structure that housed Bhogar’s shrine. But it was not so the first time I stepped into Bhogar's samadhi! The entire place now seemed shifted away and was brightly lit and colorful! I was truly puzzled. It blows my mind to think how was this possible? I wanted some answers then. Now it was clear to me. This was definitely not the route I took to Bhogar’s shrine in 2003. In my earlier visit, I walked along a passage from Lord Murugan’s shrine to Bhogar’s shrine. There was no necessity to go into the open. Bhogar's samadhi was immediately behind that of Lord Murugan's sannadhi. The shrine walls now were beautifully painted with murals depicting episodes from Bhogar’s life in color. In 2003 there were no paintings on the wall either. I was shown yet another play of the mischievous Lord Murugan.

There were four temple priests when we stepped into the chamber just as I had stepped into it in 2003. One of them showed the flame in front of the Maragatha Lingam and another figurine of Goddess Bhuvaneswari that Bhogar had worshipped, both placed on a raised dais. The priest then pointed out the opening where Bhogar had entered and is still believed to be. While he narrated the history of the temple to Tavayogi and my brother I moved to find a spot in the room to sit for a while. The fourth priest who was very much younger than the rest was standing in attendance observing me and the others, not uttering a word. As we came out of this chamber, this young priest intercepted us at the corridor away from the others. He passed a tumbler that he was holding to Tavayogi who was right in front, saying, Abhisega Paal. "Oh my God! It is happening again!" I told myself, " I am being given the Abhisega Paal again.” I was given a tumbler of milk on my visit here in 2003. I was receiving it again in 2005. Tavayogi drank a portion and passed the tumbler to my brother who was behind him. He drank a portion too and passed the rest to me. I emptied the tumbler and gratefully handed it over to the priest who look pleased. Surprisingly no one questioned him nor did he say anything further. Neither did Tavayogi, my brother, nor I talk about the incident. As we came down the steps into the open again, Tavayogi stopped and turned back to look at me. I was lagging behind obvious to him that I was in a state of bliss. He questioned me, “What is it, my son”. I went up to him and placed my head on his chest. Tears quelled in my eyes. He had this twinkle in his eyes and gave me a broad smile. I knew that he knew. I remained silent as we left the temple premises. 

The divine too is known to come as Avatars in response to the cry of innocent souls and when they are affected by the rot that sets in when there is a decline in morality and virtues and Satyam in the world. I should say that both Jesus and Ramalinga Adigal had surpassed the Gods for the former could show the other cheek and the latter could show compassion even to his enemies whereas the Gods were known to take up arms to battle and rid evil.

MEMORIES

How would you want to store and remember your past memories to be reviewed later? The movie "The Final Cut" touches on this subject. A company provides the technology for an implant that stores them. There are then professional "cutters" who cut and edit and keep the stories the family wants to see of their deceased loved one. Interesting right?

But would we really want the memories stored forever inside three important areas of the brain: the hippocampus, the neocortex, and the amygdala, or for that matter have implants? It is scary to live through some memories though we love to relinquish the good times with our dear ones. I guess forgetting is a blessing for some while remembering might be a blessing for others. 

Just as our brains keep records of our lives happenings as memories, are all happenings in the world and the universe for that matter recorded somewhere? Like the personal computer, which uploads and stores memories in the form of pictures and videos in the cloud, are the memories in our brain, stored somewhere too, maybe the Akashic library? It seems so for the Siddhas seem to have access to this large bank of data and tend to reveal some to seekers of their Nadi from time to time. The guru reveals some more. It is said in meditation the rest is revealed. Would we want to know these? 

Just as nature through floods and droughts, and man through war wipes out civilizations, the divine too is known to wipe out traces of civilizations, sacred texts, and even His footsteps for reasons only known to them. It is said that what remains of saint Arunagiri's "Thirupugazh" is only some 3000 songs while he had sung 16000 in numbers. It is said that the sea had swallowed many ancient and sacred works including this and many others too.

Time or Kala wipes out even our memories. But the saints could look out there and tell us things. They could go within and tell us things. They could look into the past and future besides revealing the present. Ramalinga Adigal speaks about numerous worlds. Agathiyar too lists these worlds as carried in Vashisht Vaid's blog at https://holysageagathiyar.com. 

Vashisht Vaid writes,

"The Great Sage Agathiyar Further Explained to the Exalted Conscious Siddhars of the Tamil Sangam about these 28 celestial worlds [Antariksha Lokas Evam Talas] of Intellectual Activities, ...

He speaks of the "Highest Dimensional World of Truth [Satyam Loka] , ‘7 Higher Dimension Celestial Worlds’ [Saptha Urdhava Lokas], 4 Higher Dimensional Worlds [Chatur Urdhava Lokas], 3 Higher Dimensional Worlds [Tritya Ucchtam Koti Urdhava Lokas], 3 Lower Denser Material Worlds [Tritya Neechtam Koti Urdhava Lokas] etc.

"The Great Sage Agathiyar added, that the ‘Fiery Elemental Essences of Consciousness’ [Agni Chaitanyas] Formulate the Vital Ethereal Bodies [Pranmaya Kosha] by Carefully Following the ‘Filtered Energy Impulses’, which Gradually Come Down from the ‘Causal Body’ [Karanam Shreera] of the Gradually Evolving ‘Soul’ [Atama], who Always Stays Vitally Established in the Higher Dimensional World of ‘Sva Loka’, from where these Energy Impulses Originating from the Desiring Mind of Evolving ‘Soul’ [Atama] are Sent Downward in the Denser Dimensional Worlds, to Vitally Acquire Various Types of ‘Spiritual Experiences’, which First Existing as ‘Vital Thought Forms’ Gradually Proceed Downwards from the SOUL’S ESTABLISHED DOMAIN, Popularly Known Among ALL SEERS & SAGES as the ‘’SELF WORLD’’ [SVA LOKA, BRIAH, SVARGA] While Mounted upon the ‘Downward Arc of Spiral Motion’, thus Gradually Passing Downward through the Formulated Channel of ‘Vital Cord’ known in Sanskrit as the ‘Sutratama Naadi’, then Vitally Enter the Differentiated Conscious Levels of this First Dimensional Eye World, which Vitally Exist Invisibly just above the Denser Levels of the ‘Bhu Loka [Dense Physical World]."

"The Great Sage Agathiyar Further Explained the ‘Tamil Sangam’, about the Downward Sent ‘Energy Impulses of an Evolving Soul’, which EVOLUTIONARY SOUL, with a GREAT EAGERNESS to ACQUIRE SPIRITUAL RADIANCE Vitally Stays Stationed for a Long Time in the Dimensional Confinements of ‘Sva Loka’ till its Desired Liberation [Mukti] Happens, because all Types of ‘Spiritual Experiences’ of the First ‘Three Denser Dimensional Worlds’ [Triloka] out of the Group of 7 Higher Dimensional Worlds [Saptha Urdhava Lokas] are Direly Needed by an Evolving ‘Soul’ [Atama] to Attain Soul’s Desired Liberation [Mukti] from all the Anchoring Bondages of all the FIRST 3 Higher, but Factually the 3 Denser Worlds [Bhu, Bhava, and Sva Lokas, Collectively Termed by Exalted Conscious Seers and Sages as ‘Triloka’."

I have gone through Vashisht's blog numerous times but it is sheer mind boggling. I have yet to comprehend the entire contents. Then again Agathiyar is fond of asking of what use are some news to us? He only reveals what is required for us to know. Then again Agathiyar tells us we have to experience the divine in this very birth and in this world. It is only here that we can engage in the method and the means to know God and return to our source. I guess the subject of these other worlds will forever be a mystery to us since it was revealed to the sages and rishis at the Tamil Sangam and not for our consumption. The day we raise our standing to become at par with them only then shall we fully understand it.

TIME IS THE ESSENCE

I had a doubt some time back. If we are to show compassion to others and asked to show the other cheek why did the Gods take up arms? We have read and heard about them going to war with the asuras, demons, dark and evil forces, etc. Wars were fought in the past to subdue evil. We are told that the Mahabharata war was fought 18 times over. I guess at times we need to go to war too to defeat and rid the problem or nuisance once and for all. Amidst all these, we have a gem in the form of Ramalinga Adigal who never hurt a soul. How did the man manage to stay cool amidst all the pounding? I wish I could be like him too.

Dharmam or charity was a word long forgotten in our family circle, surprising as it may be, given that my father was a philanthropist. He had cleared his entire earnings, assets, and properties accumulated as a moneylender for the cause of others. His generosity landed us finally to have to rent a home and move often. We had only one decent meal a day. The leftovers from lunch were packed into rice balls and were passed around the siblings for dinner. I guess when things were never enough to go around the family, the thought of charity never arises too. But my father's good deeds set the way for better things in life. I am indebted to him. 

Dharmam was reintroduced after I saw my Nadi. In giving me remedies to subdue my past karma Agathiyar had me do charity in many ways where I began to depart and give away hard-earned money. That was continued with the coming of my guru Tavayogi who carried a legacy of doing charity at his ashram. I took it up too. Arriving back in Malaysia with the coming together of several youths we began a WhatsApp group Amudha Surabhi that took to feeding the poor and other similar programs. 

Dharmam took many reforms in our lives and reformed our lives too. If at first we were brought to do charity to have us open up our eyes to the existence of others who are not so fortunate, the act of giving and sharing soon opened our hearts to compassion and daivu that oozed and streamed from within. A friend who returned from participating in doing charity at a movement abroad was so impressed by their work that on returning home he asked Agathiyar to send a person each day to him so that he could feed a soul. This seemed like a noble wish to ask for and a noble act too - initially. But today Agathiyar makes me realize that just as engaging in all the charity programs that we drafted under the banner of Amudha Surabhi for some 7 years only installed and reinforced our ego, similarly, the very prayer asking that God should send someone to receive our donation or food itself builds merits at the expense of the poor and hungry. Agathiyar tells me a better option and prayer would be to ask that God eliminate poverty in totality. 

Though it is true that we took birth because we had past karma to live out and because we carried unfulfilled desires or wanted to experience other new things and emotions, I was made to realize that we are here because of the wishes of other souls too. My daughters wanted us to be their parents again. This was revealed in their Nadi readings. 

While the ego in us and the "I" boldly declares that it is in charge of our lives, where we are born, and to whom is beyond its pick or choice. This is requested by the Atma for want of certain experiences with certain people. I guess we have to meet some people in our lives for a purpose. What Neale Donald Walsch wrote in his children's parable adapted from his book one of "Conversations with God", titled "The Little Soul and the Sun", holds water and seems true. In the local Malay movie "Sepi" directed by Kabir Bhatia that I watched with my daughter last evening, three strangers cross paths and cause an impact on the other's life. https://www.imdb.com/ reviewed it "All three strangers are inevitably linked to a single dramatic moment that transforms their lives forever." There are many similar movies that I have mentioned earlier in the earlier blog and this. 

When I was offered another job at the beginning of my career in 1980, I contemplated whether to leave my new job of just a few months and take up the new offer. Studying the pros and cons but as I was still undecided till I came down to Kuala Lumpur, I walked into the Maha Mariamman temple at Jalan Bandar in Kuala Lumpur and asked for divine guidance. On coming out of the temple, I saw a wayside astrologer in front of the temple. I let him decide for me taking his words as God's. He told me my life would prosper if I opted for a job beside the sea. That surprised me. I was already working in that locality. I had not given him any hint of both the jobs and their localities. As I was already posted at the naval base I opted to stay put. Now I realize by staying put I had to meet many souls, among them some of whose lives would change me. Seeing their experiences, sufferings and sudden death led me to view God with anger. Seeing me going cuckoo and confused prompted Lord Shiva to come in a dream to put a stop to all my anger and confusion. This I believe would not have taken place if I had accepted the job in Kuala Lumpur. I would have met other souls and encountered other experiences with them. It was only because I stayed back that I had those extremely essential experiences for my soul advancement. I guess I could now piece together the puzzle of the individual who carried my name and had the same number of siblings, and had many other details matched except that he was married to one Manohari. I guess I would have met the Manohari mentioned if I had chosen to be in Kuala Lumpur. Just a wild guess.

After a 14-year break, Lord Shiva took me in his folds and had Agathiyar and two wonderful gurus in a physical form lead me to where I am today. On this journey of learning, we realized that the goal post keeps shifting. When we think we have arrived at the answer, as mentioned in the movie "Hidden Figures", what happens is "Every time we get a chance to get ahead they move the finish line." When we think we have understood something it turns out that that is not it. Eventually after shedding and negating everything we thought and held to be true and right what stands alone shall finally be the truth. If I thought I was in charge initially when things did not move as I wished for I thought God did not listen and was ruthless and merciless. Then it turns out that God is not and never interferes in our lives. We are told that it is our desires that take hold of us and chart our journey. I was told that it is fate, destiny, and karma that springs from these desires that have an upper hand. This was true until it dawned on us that the other souls too have a great impact on the experiences we shall gather and how our lives shall turn out to be.

In the face of adversity, where do we turn to? Who do we turn to? Family and friends might give a listening ear or aid financially but what if things are beyond their assistance? When all means and ground are covered unsuccessfully we then look towards God. If that is to happen someday, why wait till we are driven to a corner and meantime made to face our sufferings alone? Why not bring God to stay with us rather than invite him into our lives only when faced with danger and suffering? Ain't it better to prevent than to cure? How do we engage with him? Where is God? Is he out there? If yes, where? We are shown the places of worship as abodes of the Gods which the genius in us doubts. We are shown the sacred texts that are equally hard to comprehend. We are brought outdoors and asked to see God in nature which we cannot comprehend either. We are shown to the skies and heavens where we strain our eyes to look for any signs of him. We are told to see God in others which is the hardest part. We are shown the lamp and asked to worship the flame that is incomprehensible too. We are asked to sit alone and see God within which is the toughest thing to do. But for a hungry man, God is not in all these signature items but in the food that comes in a timely manner to appease his hunger. God is in the drop of water that quenches his thirst. To the dying man the breath is God. So it seems God is all around and in many forms. One has just to take hold of one of the many vines and start his climb to reach God. The most compassionate one will then reach out to us too. As Tavayogi told us that our efforts are only till the Svadhisthana chakra the divine shall meet us 2/7th of the way. Henceforth God shall lead us. 

Just as in tracking a hill many might make it; some might drop out; some might get lost without a guide; some might be able to track following signs left by previous trackers or gurus; some might come to the end of their lives while tracking taking on the unaccomplished desire with them; this is life's journey. It is so colorful. It is so diverse. There are so many options. Accomplishment is solely based on each individual's level of satisfaction and contentment in arriving at the destination. There is no standard gauge or yardstick.  After trekking for days on end how does it feel to have reached the destination or peak that we laid our eyes on? A sense of fulfillment and accomplishment envelops us. But as the joy settles we set our eyes on the next peak. That is human nature ever wanting to scale new heights and peak after peak.

The path is varied. Initially, it might attract many but eventually, only some sustain the heat of the journey. The journey needs discipline and concerted effort sustained by the practice of regimes. Only some come through the ordeal. Many drop out. But none of the efforts is wasted we are told. We are not to condemn those who opted out. They shall come by when they are more mature and ready to take on the challenge. 

YOGA

Yoga is not the right of a select few but is for all. If we are accustomed to the terms Asthanga Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Kriya Yoga, and many others, that is taken up and practiced by select groups of people seeking to better their lives physically and spiritually, the commoner is not left out from the mainstream. Everyone is engaged in Karma Yoga. Every one of us has done Karma Yoga at some time or other in our life. By the grace of the divine, then the guru comes to show the other yoga forms. Supramania Swami showed me Bhakti Yoga, by example. I saw his devotion towards his gurus. Tavayogi came to teach us Yoga Asanas and Pranayama as is known today as Raja Yoga, Patanjali Yoga, etc. Acharya Gurudasan taught us Kriya Yoga. We now await for Jnana Yoga or divine knowledge, the last pearl on the string, to dawn on us.

Swami Vivekananda in his book "Karma Yoga" mentions that, "In all creation--in animals, plants, and men--we find the more or less typical manifestation of all these different forces (Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas). Karma Yoga has specially to deal with these three factors. By teaching what they are and how to employ them, it helps us to do our work better."

"The life of every individual, according to the Hindu scriptures, has its peculiar duties apart from what belongs in common to universal humanity. The Hindu begins life as a student; then he marries and becomes a householder; in old age, he retires; and lastly he gives up the world and becomes a Sannyasin. To each of these stages of life, certain duties are attached. The four stages of life in India have in later times been reduced to two--that of the householder and of the monk. The householder marries and carries on his duties as a citizen, and the duty of the other is to devote his energies wholly to religion, to preach and to worship God."

"The life of the married man is quite as great as that of the celibate who has devoted himself to religious work. The scavenger in the street is quite as great and glorious as the king on his throne. Take him off his throne, make him do the work of the scavenger, and see how he fares. Take up the scavenger and see how he will rule. It is useless to say that the man who lives out of the world is a greater man than he who lives in the world; it is much more difficult to live in the world and worship God than to give it up and live a free and easy life."

The Swami adds that it is alright to go after wealth provided it is distributed among others. "If he gets riches, hundreds of others will be thereby supported." Like the poor and unfortunate, many sadhus too live off the alms given by householders and the public.

Going by our earlier research on karma, we had only considered them to be actions or deeds carried out in the past. Reading Swami Vivekananda's "Karma Yoga" and the 5 tenets as revealed by Agathiyar it seems now that karma constitutes both the result of our past actions and also the detailing of fresh actions that need to be taken.

Having lived a purposeful life that is both beneficial to the individual, family and friends and others, the community and society, and finally the nation, with the coming of a guru he dwells into the ways of saving his Atma. The guru teaches him the numerous forms of Yoga. If Swami Vivekananda wrote that Raja Yoga is based on the aphorisms or Sutras of Patanjali, Swami Prabhavananda in his book "Patanjali Yoga Sutras", published by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai, writes that Patanjali's work is "a work of compilation and reformation, restated for the man of his period." 

"References to yoga practices are to be found already in the Katha, Svtasvatara, Taittiriya, and Maitrayani Upanishads very many centuries earlier. Indeed the yoga doctrine may be said to have been handed down from prehistoric times." 

Coming later, M.Govindan in his book "Babaji", published by Babaji's Kriya Yoga Order of Acharyas Trust, Bangalore, India, describes Kriya Yoga as a crystallization of the teachings and techniques of Yoga Siddhantham, the ancient teachings of the Yoga Siddhas, developed and promulgated by Babaji to have man realize his potential." 

We are blessed to have these ancient techniques passed on to us by our learned gurus and upagurus. This has to be passed on too.

KARMA YOGA

Vashisht Vaid's blog at https://holysageagathiyar.com is a goldmine of information. Vashisht writes, "There are five types of main works, which should be dutifully performed upon daily basis, by the evolving humanity during the given term period of their incarnated lives," and goes on to list the work given as, "of which the number 1 work [prathma karma]", followed by number two work and the rests.

1. prathma karma,
2. dvitiya karma,
3. tritiya karma,
4. chatush karma, and
5. pancha karma.

1. The number 1 work [prathma karma] is to find out the very reason, for which they came over to exist in this human form life on planet earth.
2. The number 2 work [dvitiya karma] for a human being, is to devoutly meditate upon the one and only unknowable universal father lord.
3. The number 3 work [tritiya karma] for a human being is to dutifully pay respects and obedience to this physical world dutiful caretaker’s, which all caretakers especially include their physical world parents and grandparents [lokik pitris], and also to the lunar forefathers [soma pitris]. 
4. The number 4 work [chatush karma] for a human being is to dutifully aid and help, the ongoing evolution of all co-existing human beings upon this planet earth.
5. The number 5 work [pancha karma] for a human being is to dutifully aid and help, the ongoing evolution of all co-existing beings and entities, who all vitally exist upon the lower levels of the evolutionary ladder.

Upon close scrutiny of the above 5 tenets for humanity, Agathiyar in listing the 5 reasons and purposes of man in taking birth, brings us to realize that each of these 5 deals with a particular degree of karma or work listed from 1 to 5. Could these be Karma Yoga, the essential yoga that each human should carry out during his lifetime? 

Karma Yoga is the Yoga of action says Swami Vivekananda. Karma in this instance is work. It is a means to do service to the world and reach enlightenment. Indeed Agathiyar has listed our duties clearly in his 5 tenets. Here man is directed to carry out actions that bring beneficial results to both the self and all of creation. If Agathiyar had decreed these 5 tenets to be followed by humans, at the assembly of sages and seers in the past, when he speaks one to one through his medium of communication the Nadi, on the onset our past karma is laid before us, and solutions are provided by the most compassionate Siddhas. I realize now that above and beyond these the Siddhas lay before each individual directives in Karma Yoga that he/she has to undertake during the rest of his or her lives. Though the past has determined the present, coming to the Siddhas they begin to show new ways to come out of the web we have spun for ourselves by bringing us to Karma Yoga. Karma Yoga then sets our course right henceforth. 

 

Swami Vivekananda wrote in his book, "Karma Yoga", "You must remember that all work is simply to bring out the power of the mind which is already there, to wake up the soul." He shares the secret of work. 

"The ideal man is he who, in the midst of the greatest silence and solitude, finds the intensest activity, and in the midst of the intensest activity finds the silence and solitude of the desert. He has learned the secret of restraint, he has controlled himself. He goes through the streets of a big city with all its traffic, and his mind is as calm as if he were in a cave, where not a sound could reach him; and he is intensely working all the time. That is the ideal of Karma Yoga, and if you have attained to that you have really learned the secret of work. But we have to begin from the beginning, to take up the works as they come to us and slowly make ourselves more unselfish every day."

Swami Vivekananda pacifies us, "There may be those exceptional persons about whom I just spoke, those who can stand aside and give up the world, as a snake casts off its skin and stands aside and looks at it. There are no doubt these exceptional beings, but the rest of mankind have to go slowly through the world of work. Karma-Yoga shows the process, the secret, and the method of doing it to the best advantage." So does Agathiyar's 5 tenets show us the way to reach the peak eventually. His message is for the commoner and layman bringing him to reach the peak too. The most compassionate did not rule anyone out. Even the one yearning to progress further spiritually and reach higher peaks has to start with these 5 tenets first.

It was an extremely hot day. The dogs began to bark, a sign that the garbage truck was making its way through the streets. I picked up my kitchen trash and laid it in the pile that the garbage collector had created for ease of collection. Just as I returned indoors I saw a worker look into my home. He called me and asked if I had some water to spare. My eyes welled in tears. I had engaged in aggressive feeding and charitable programs in the past with others at Amudha Surabhi and Pothihai Tharma Chakram. Though it made me sad to see the state of affairs of the homeless and those in orphaned homes, reaching out to them did not warrant the tears in my eyes as did seeing this worker stand at my gate and ask for some water to quench his thirst. I guess in all our rounds of feeding and helping others there was that minute element of ego in me that I was doing service. But when I saw the afternoon sun drain the worker of his last ounce of energy, I felt his thirst. I had to replenish it. When I narrated this happening to my granddaughter she surprised me by asking "Why did he choose your house, Grandpa?" I had no answer. But I felt the scorching sun burn my skin and my throat parch and dry too that moment. My "I" or identity did not exist then. I only saw myself in his shoes. Swami Vivekananda writes, "The highest ideal is eternal and entire self-abnegation, where there is no "I", but all is "Thou"; and whether he is conscious or unconscious of it, Karma-Yoga leads man to that end." I stood before Agathiyar in tears and speechless after passing the worker a bottle of water.